Advanced Russian Missiles Threaten to Split Ukraine in Half... Kyiv Under Siege of Bridges and Energy

Field developments in Ukraine have revealed that Russia is deploying an upgraded version of the Iskander ballistic missile, equipped with optical and radar guidance systems that allow it to alter its trajectory mid-flight and make last-minute adjustments, enabling strikes with precision down to a few meters. This capability poses a threat to disrupting the country’s critical transportation and energy infrastructure.

According to a report published by Britain’s The Telegraph, Moscow is using this new technology to target vital bridges in the capital, Kyiv. The missiles can now perform radar mapping of the terrain seconds before impact, helping them bypass Ukrainian electronic warfare systems.

Serhiy Beskrestnov, an advisor to the Ukrainian presidency, stated that recent strikes targeted bridges in Kyiv, disrupting traffic links between the two banks of the Dnipro River, which divides the capital into two parts.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had previously accused Russia of seeking to split Ukraine along the Dnipro River, making life more difficult for residents, cities, and villages.

Ukrainian officials estimate that Russia’s strategy extends beyond targeting bridges to include disrupting the transmission of electricity from western to eastern Ukraine, potentially depriving millions of people of power.

For weeks, Russia had targeted major bridges using jet-powered drones before switching to ballistic missiles. Last week, four missiles struck the northern Pivnichnyi Bridge in a single night.

Military strategy and technology expert Mauro Gilli noted that the new development addresses a traditional weakness of ballistic missiles: their limited accuracy during the final phase of flight.

Although the strikes failed to destroy the sturdy bridges, they disrupted pedestrian and public transport, causing severe traffic congestion. In eastern Kyiv, residents are experiencing severe outages of electricity, heating, and water, with some receiving power for only two hours a day.

Many have been forced to cross bridges on foot, while daily life has grown more difficult due to the closure of metro lines and the disruption of essential services.

Estimates warn that Moscow is seeking to fragment Ukraine’s power grid into isolated regions unable to exchange energy among themselves, a strategy that could increase pressure on civilians and industries supporting the war effort as winter approaches.